I was doing spins (my first!) with my Pulse XT this afternoon when it occurred to me that exactly one year ago today was my first trip to the local hobby store. I'd gotten a Slow Stick for Christmas and needed all the rest of the goodies- funny how a $30 airplane has cost me hundreds and hundreds. In a year's time I've gone from the Slow Stick to an Avistar to the Pulse and am hooked. So now I wonder... where do I go from here?

One of the nice things about this hobby is that there are so many different paths to take: warbirds, scale, pattern, multi, kits, etc. I get the feeling I want to move up in size with perhaps an eye towards trying some precision flying. While I know there's nothing wrong with 40 size planes, what's a reasonable jump in size to make without biting off too much? Should I go to say a 90 only after some experience in a 60, or does it matter?

For what it's worth, I'm totally comfortable flying the Avistar and no longer afraid of the Pulse.

Thoughts?



Jerry

I guess it all depends on what you really want to do. You can continue sport flying, or go 3D, or pattern, large scale gas, scale, whatever.

What I did, and this is by no means a recommendation, just something that guided me through the past seveal years, is I went to a low wing 60 size and started to learn maneuvers. Controlled maneuvers. Meaning, knowing what happens next and what happens after the end of the maneuver. This sort of led me into Pattern, which is precision aerobatics, however, I never competed with it, just enjoyed learning the complex maneuvers, and trying to do them well.

Some are contented to fly warbirds. Building them, and making them fly can be a challenge, as can a lot of our hobby. There are so many aspects of it that I would suggest that you go through some of the forums here on RCU, and they are all covered, believe me.. and see if there is anything that strikes you fancy.

My second plane, by the way, was a Tiger 60. The pattern pro at our club said that it is a capable aircraft, but doscile as a trainer. Several of the pattern folks said that it was a good way to get started in the world of pattern flying (precision aerobatics done in a patterned sequence and scored accordingly by judges). Mainly because it was so capable, and easy to fly. It can be set up to fly as straight as an arrow.. hands off.. which is a solid pre-requisite for a pattern plane.

Then, I also enjoyed (enjoy.. I still do) flying my sport planes. The Kaos is a great next step, for sure.

CGr.

Like CGR said, where you go depends on where you want to eventually get.

But I would say if you want to go bigger, a 60 (2-stroke) 90 (4-stroke) size plane is the logical next step size-wise.

Most .90 and 1.20 sized airframes are more expensive to outfit, but generally easier to fly than smaller planes. The size of your aircraft is often determined more by the size of your vehicle than your talent as a pilot. Large airframes are easier to see, more stable in the air, and less succeptible to wind than smaller airframes.

If you're interested in trying a great sport/pattern plane, take a look at the Great Planes Venus 40, Venus II, or Phoenix SeaBee ARFs.

The Phoenix Seabee is probably the hobby's best kept secret at $99.99; available from Tower, it's an extremely fun airframe for pilots who've mastered their low wing trainer and want to explore aerobatics further. It flies very well with a ball-bearing .46 2-stroke and is easy and straightforward to assemble.

The Great Planes Venus 40 and Venus II are two more great choices for an introductory sport/pattern plane with great flying characteristics. I would choose the Venus 40 over the SeaBee if you're certain you'll enjoy precision aerobatics and you want to invest in a top-quality ARF. I would choose the Venus II if you're certain you'll enjoy precision aerobatics and you want a larger airframe to fly as well.

Obviously there are dozens of fantastic choices for pattern aircraft on the market, I'm simply mentioning three of the most readily available ARFs that come to mind. The SeaBee is a terrific, inexpensive ARF that would be a good choice for your next step up in airframes. The Venus 40/Venus II ARFs would be excellent choices as well, with the Venus II giving you a chance to enjoy a larger airframe.

Good luck and good shopping!

One thing that you could do that wouldn't cost you a thing is like what CGR said, learn precision. Even with the planes that you currently have, you can still hone up on your precision flying. And, it doesn't always have to be swirling around in the sky, just try controlling the plane with certainty, not reacting to what it is doing. You'll be amazed at what you can do (and how much focus it takes) to just get a lowly trainer to do EXACTLY what you want it to do-- every time! Lessons you learn at this stage will only help you on the next step of your RC experience. My .02

There are a few pattern guys in your area, get a hold of them they can steer you in the right direction if you decide to do pattern

Thanks for all the comments!

3D doesn't really grab me, and I don't trust myself with a nice warbird yet. I do have some pattern folks in the area, and was lucky enough to go to a BPA meet locally over the summer. Watching those guys, I said "Man I want to fly like THAT."

I keep seeing mention of the Venus II here and have seen one or two at the field... that's certainly an option. I like the idea of the added visibility of a bigger airframe. I do have a Kaos sitting on the shelf still in its box, but it's a 40. It might make a good baby step while I save my pennies for a Venus or one of the other suggestions and of course I'm practicing with what I have in the meantime -flying parallel to to the runway was hard enough for me today with the crosswind so I have a ways to go.

I might post over on Pattern and see what the consensus is. But I wanted to check here first on the size question before I jump in with both feet. Thanks again...

Chondar,
I just wanted to say "great question". I have been flying since about May of this year. All I wanted to do was go from my Nexstar to warbirds. The guys on here talked me into a low wing second plane, so I bought the Pulse XT. I love it! I really practice with the Pulse, trying to make it do want I want it to do, instead of guessing whats it's going to do next. It's just so much fun to fly. Bought a VQ warbirds P-51D and have about 15 flights on it. It is really easy to fly, I presume becase it is sport/scale. One week I want to build/fly nothing but warbirds. The next week, I want to do sport planes. I hope you find your direction, I obviously haven't found mine. This hobby is really addicting!

If you can do a one wheel touch and go on target your getting closer I have one of the guys tell me which wheel on the aproach just for fun

Many people that do practice the Pattern sequences, and do them in order as intended, learn to fly much better than people that just fly circles and do random maneuvers. The reason is that the discipline is instilled to know what is next, and to prepare for it. That means setting up the maneuvers with a 'straight line' and learning stick control... pulling straight back on the elevator, for instance, rather than accidentally angular which throws in some aileron influence in a loop.. (just an example).

It also takes some time to get the plane set up properly. Such things as mechanical trim adjustments to fine tune the surfaces to get them right, and to make the plane fly truly straight. Once done, then practice of the maneuver sequences, with knowledge of what is coming up next and the maneuver after that.. sets up things so that you tend to fly much better because you are thinking of what is to come rather than reacting to it.

This is, of course, if you are looking to move forward. Granted, some RC'ers are just fine with taking off, doing orbits and an occasional loop or roll, and then other things.. which is just fine. That's sport flying and is just as much fun as anything else you can do, including pattern practice. This is not a bad thing, by any stretch of the imagination, so if you are contented to do just that, then, by all means, go for it. No one will will say anything negative about that, for sure.

We had one guy that would take off after I was in the air, fly a few orbits, and land. Then he would refuel and do it all over again, while I was still in the air [sm=bananahead.gif]. I'm not sure if he knew he had over 10 minutes of fuel in that plane or not.. but that's what he did. Strange, but true. And he enjoyed doing that. Drove most of us crazy because he would decide to land while we were on approach after burning a tank... and he had plenty of fuel left. Strange indeed.


CGr.

part of your question had to do with engine/plane size....after a couple of .60 size planes..I went to a 1.60 with no problems...In a way the bigger aircraft are easier to fly....once your eye gets used to judging distance with the bigger airframe, you'll find them easier to see and less affected by winds....so do what ever you'd like..it's all fun